After the Storm

08. I waste my time, money and energy on an ifrit

Why was she staring at me slack jawed? She looked like a goldfish with her mouth agape and eyes bulging. A really ugly, old goldfish.

She stammered nervously, fiddling with her outrageously costly dress in the process. "I...erm..."

I did my second kind act today by saving her from having to come up with some pathetic excuse. "I heard that a Peer of the Realms is here today. Is it true?"

"Oh Lord Dalgliesh you mean? Yes. He is there." Lady Metcalf pointed at the familiar light haired man beguiling a group of moony eyed women. The wealthy woman, who of course still could not beat me in the money department, looked eager to get rid of me.

I wonder why. It must be due to my charming personality.

Without waiting for her to speak again, I marched off. I hated social gatherings with a passion. They were ultimate consumers of time, money and maybe even my sanity.

Out of the blue, an arm latched around mine. My first instinct was to take hold of that hand and yank it out of its socket. Either that, or to twist it behind the person's back and kick the back of their knees so they buckled. However, looking at the lady who had made her way next to me, I was mildly relieved that I hadn't followed my instincts.

"So..." Miss Elizabeth Hamilton smiled at me, flashing her well aligned teeth.

Thinking of teeth, remember the time you told Lillian to check always check the teeth first? It was rather hilarious.

I silenced the random thought that popped up in my head. I didn't need any frustrating thoughts on that rebellious, nosy individual who didn't know how to mind her own business.

She even guessed your purpose incorrectly. Fancy thinking that you came for Elizabeth's sake.

I almost snorted out loud. Lillian, or Mr Linton as I preferred to call her, was incredibly naive. There were moments in which I reconsidered why she was still in my employ.

Females had considerably less sense than men in almost every factor possible. Yes, Lillian could be adequately intelligent on certain occassions, such as her escapade with onions and an infernally expensive dress that I paid for. In spite of that, she could be incredibly dim-witted in the worst of times.

She could still be in your employ because you don't actually want to see her leave.

I immediately slammed the door on my eccentric thoughts. What was wrong with my brain that day? I had no tolerance for voices that spoke out of line, especially not those that spoke nonsense!

"Lord Dalgliesh is here." Elizabeth's soft voice jolted me out of my reverie.

"I can see that."

"Nothing ever misses your sight, does it?"

"No."

She laughed daintily. ″That's good.″

We fell into another comfortable silence that I enjoyed immensely. Elizabeth was one of the very, very few women I could stand without wanting to punch someone in the eye. She wasn't overly talkative, wasn't interested in gaining my affection, and was largely corporative in what I wanted to do.

My eyes roamed my surroundings slowly, taking note of any tiny detail that could be of value. I narrowed in on Daniel Eugene Dalgliesh every few minutes to catch any suspicious activity. By the time twenty minutes and fifty four seconds had passed, I began to get annoyed.

What is he doing here today? If I remembered accurately, which I never ever failed to, he was supposed to have a meeting in the House of Lords at exactly nine in the evening. Him being around was a bad sign that could mean trouble. He was never one to attend an event just for their frivolous activities.